October 15, 2008
Hello everybody! They didn't quite manage to kick me out of Los Reales yet, I'm still here with Elder Thomas. We'll be spending another transfer together which oficially makes him the companion who I've spent the most amount of time with.
Questions regarding the medical bill: The cause was that I got a big 'ol splinter shoved under my fingernail. Haven't been hit by a car on my bike, but my companion has!
I've been feeling sick lately. Things went from HOT to decent to pretty cold really fast. It still gets hot during the day but right now it's starting to get really really cold at night. So basically the first night that that happened I was caught unawares and got chilled and caught a pretty bad cold.
Which brings me to a pretty cool story. My companion and I got sick. I was feeling pretty miserable. So I was really REALLY lookoing forward to my sleep that night. Well around 1:00 AM I wake up and my companion is snoring louder than a death medal band + a jet engine on my head. I wait ten minutes to see if he'll stop, he doesn't, and so I pack up my blanket and pillow and head to the other side of the house. The thing that makes this particularly unpleasant is that we don't have any carpet in the entire house, just linolium. Well five minutes into tossing and turning on a rock hard floor I realize that this isn't going to work. So I got up and said a prayer and asked God to help me sleep through the night. I laid back down and immediately the thought entereed into my head "Elder Thomas stopped snoring". OKAY! I head back into the room and Elder Thomas is sleeping like a baby and didn't snore for the whole rest of the night. It was a testimony builder for me that God is concerned about the little things in our lives.
I got the packages that you sent me. THANK YOU! It was nice to get some food from back home. Big morale booster.
Oh and my camera and my charger and everything is present and in working order. The only problem is that I often forget to bring it with me when photo opportunities pop-up but I'll try to send you a few pictures in the future.
Well that's about it for this week's eidition. The work of God continues progressing. I love you all and am so greatful for such wonderful parents, siblings, friends and associates. I'm so greatful to be a missionary! This is an amazing work! THE GOSPEL IS TRUE!
Love,
Elder Wilson
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
You Rush a Miracle Man, You Get Rotten Miracles
October 6, 2008
Hello everybody! Tucson is... NOT SO HOT ANYMORE! Hopefully it's not just a temporary thing but things actually cooled off yesterday. WOAH! I can't believe it! I was ready to do backflips when I walked out of conference on Saturday around 11:30 and it was mildly warm with a slight breeze. Yes, there was much high-fiving, hugging, celebrating, and screaming for joy from the only full-bike companionship in Tucson.
Yes indeed, conference was amazing. I actually liked the earlier sessions better, confirming Mom's theory that when there are less people at a meeting (especially because of some sort of physical difficulty or inconvencience), it is correspondingly more spiritually powerful. You all pretty much guessed the ones I liked: Sis. Allred, Elder Oaks, Pres. Uchtdorf, Pres. Eyring, Elder Daikutaikus (or whatever his name was), ELDER WIRTHLIN, Elder Christofferson, ok actually I'm going to stop because I could just pretty much go through everyone who spoke. WOW! What an amazing and spiritually uplifting conference! I was literally almost shaking with excitement when President Monson went through and announced all of the new temples.
And who saw the special on President Monson? Holy smokes! What a guy! He also happens to have the most photographic memory I've ever even heard of. "When I first saw my wife I was on the corner of 22nd east and 3rd south, it was 3:22 PM, I was wearing black shoes that I had bought on sale a week earlier and there was a slight breeze blowing to the west."
Unfortunately the investigators didn't quite make their way over (I would have loved for some of them to have heard that talk about the BOM by Elder Daikakutaituakaitus). But there's always conference talks on DVD, right?
Hmmm... it seems like conference has wiped my memory clean of anything and everything else that's going on. Oh yeah, transfers are a week from Wednesday (and there's a pretty decent chance I'll get shipped out) so get cautious with letter writing once we get close to that date. I'm excited for these transfers because I'm getting along really well with my companion, so I'll be really happy if I stay, and I'm sick and tired of being on bikes, so I'll be really happy if I get transfered. Kind of a win-win situation.
Oh yeah, this morning I bought some pants for the suit that has been out of comission for a few months because the pants wore through completely. It was actually kind of a miracle but I found pants that were almost EXACTLY the same color. So this is kind of a round-about way of saying: you'll see my paw-marks on the next credit card bill.
Well that's it for this week's edition boys and girls. The gospel is true and I'm so greatful to be a missionary here in Tucson!
Love,
Elder Wilson
Hello everybody! Tucson is... NOT SO HOT ANYMORE! Hopefully it's not just a temporary thing but things actually cooled off yesterday. WOAH! I can't believe it! I was ready to do backflips when I walked out of conference on Saturday around 11:30 and it was mildly warm with a slight breeze. Yes, there was much high-fiving, hugging, celebrating, and screaming for joy from the only full-bike companionship in Tucson.
Yes indeed, conference was amazing. I actually liked the earlier sessions better, confirming Mom's theory that when there are less people at a meeting (especially because of some sort of physical difficulty or inconvencience), it is correspondingly more spiritually powerful. You all pretty much guessed the ones I liked: Sis. Allred, Elder Oaks, Pres. Uchtdorf, Pres. Eyring, Elder Daikutaikus (or whatever his name was), ELDER WIRTHLIN, Elder Christofferson, ok actually I'm going to stop because I could just pretty much go through everyone who spoke. WOW! What an amazing and spiritually uplifting conference! I was literally almost shaking with excitement when President Monson went through and announced all of the new temples.
And who saw the special on President Monson? Holy smokes! What a guy! He also happens to have the most photographic memory I've ever even heard of. "When I first saw my wife I was on the corner of 22nd east and 3rd south, it was 3:22 PM, I was wearing black shoes that I had bought on sale a week earlier and there was a slight breeze blowing to the west."
Unfortunately the investigators didn't quite make their way over (I would have loved for some of them to have heard that talk about the BOM by Elder Daikakutaituakaitus). But there's always conference talks on DVD, right?
Hmmm... it seems like conference has wiped my memory clean of anything and everything else that's going on. Oh yeah, transfers are a week from Wednesday (and there's a pretty decent chance I'll get shipped out) so get cautious with letter writing once we get close to that date. I'm excited for these transfers because I'm getting along really well with my companion, so I'll be really happy if I stay, and I'm sick and tired of being on bikes, so I'll be really happy if I get transfered. Kind of a win-win situation.
Oh yeah, this morning I bought some pants for the suit that has been out of comission for a few months because the pants wore through completely. It was actually kind of a miracle but I found pants that were almost EXACTLY the same color. So this is kind of a round-about way of saying: you'll see my paw-marks on the next credit card bill.
Well that's it for this week's edition boys and girls. The gospel is true and I'm so greatful to be a missionary here in Tucson!
Love,
Elder Wilson
Are There Rocks Ahead? If There Are, We'll All Be Dead
September 29, 2008
Hello everybody! It's been another awesome week here in Tucson. We had another baptism this last Saturday and it was spiritually powerful. We've been seeing a lot of success working with part-member families, and we found another one just yesterday with two un-baptized teenagers. So the work is going well.
Next week is General conference and that's exciting for a couple of reasons:
1) Hear the words of the prophets and apostles
2) I can take a break from correcting apostasy during church (Last week the Young Womens teacher let everyone know that it's okay to drink coffee as long as it's decaf)
Thanks for all the pictures from the Hales and Hare fams. Those pictures at Disneyland were crazy awesome... and baby Eva looks so cute. And I can't believe how big the Hales boys are getting. Tell them to stop growing until I get home!
Someone asked me if I'm more organized. Answer: Yes. But my memory is still somewhere around the level of a goldfish. And I still misplace things all the time. Some things even a mission can't fix.
By the way I never did receive a copy of Mom's first D&C Scripture Study. I just got an old one that I already had from Mosiah. That would be really really nice to get.
In case anyone was wondering, the weather continues about normal. 100 degrees almost every day. It's significantly better than a month or two ago, though.
Here's something that has really helped me in my teaching. I think it's good advice for anyone who teaches the gospel. Teaching Mosiah 3:19 leads to Mosiah 4:1-3. So many missionaries avoid teaching the fall because it can be somewhat tricky but it's so worth it when you do it right. It helps people to realize that their works aren't going to save them.
Which brings me to another point. Before the mission I always that Paul was kind of crazy. Why does he spend so much time on "saved by grace" doctrine? It always kind of bugged me because it leads to all of these "confess with the mouth and ye shall be saved" nuts. But after a year in the mission field I realize that 90% of people out there believe that their works are going to save them and don't really rely on the merits of him who is mighty to save.
Well anyways, I feel that I've rambled enough. (Inevitably I'll get a few emails telling me I didn't, anyways) Thank you for all the love and support. I have such amazing family and friends. Viva Tucson!
Love,
Elder Wilson
Hello everybody! It's been another awesome week here in Tucson. We had another baptism this last Saturday and it was spiritually powerful. We've been seeing a lot of success working with part-member families, and we found another one just yesterday with two un-baptized teenagers. So the work is going well.
Next week is General conference and that's exciting for a couple of reasons:
1) Hear the words of the prophets and apostles
2) I can take a break from correcting apostasy during church (Last week the Young Womens teacher let everyone know that it's okay to drink coffee as long as it's decaf)
Thanks for all the pictures from the Hales and Hare fams. Those pictures at Disneyland were crazy awesome... and baby Eva looks so cute. And I can't believe how big the Hales boys are getting. Tell them to stop growing until I get home!
Someone asked me if I'm more organized. Answer: Yes. But my memory is still somewhere around the level of a goldfish. And I still misplace things all the time. Some things even a mission can't fix.
By the way I never did receive a copy of Mom's first D&C Scripture Study. I just got an old one that I already had from Mosiah. That would be really really nice to get.
In case anyone was wondering, the weather continues about normal. 100 degrees almost every day. It's significantly better than a month or two ago, though.
Here's something that has really helped me in my teaching. I think it's good advice for anyone who teaches the gospel. Teaching Mosiah 3:19 leads to Mosiah 4:1-3. So many missionaries avoid teaching the fall because it can be somewhat tricky but it's so worth it when you do it right. It helps people to realize that their works aren't going to save them.
Which brings me to another point. Before the mission I always that Paul was kind of crazy. Why does he spend so much time on "saved by grace" doctrine? It always kind of bugged me because it leads to all of these "confess with the mouth and ye shall be saved" nuts. But after a year in the mission field I realize that 90% of people out there believe that their works are going to save them and don't really rely on the merits of him who is mighty to save.
Well anyways, I feel that I've rambled enough. (Inevitably I'll get a few emails telling me I didn't, anyways) Thank you for all the love and support. I have such amazing family and friends. Viva Tucson!
Love,
Elder Wilson
We Have No Sense Of Humor That WeAre Aware Of
September 22, 2008
Hello everyone! Unfortunately I don't have much time to write. We're here on the U of A campus and it took us almost half an hour just to find computers.
Anyways everything is going well here in Los Reales. We had a baptism on Saturday. A young man named Daniel Virgen.
I also did my first four baptismal interviews in the last week and those were very humbling, revelatory experiences.
Elder Smith is headed off to Peru on Wednesday morning, so I'll be back to a two-some. Lately we've been working out the three-some thing a lot better but I'm not going to lie: It will be really really nice to be back to training only one person.
The branch had a huge Mexican party on Saturday. It had waaaaay better attendance than any sacrament meeting has ever had. I'm not going to lie, it's a little frustrating when you've been breaking your back to get an investigator to church for a week and half to no avail but when you simply extend an invitation for a party they're there no problem. Mexicans love their parties...
I'm doing really really well. Happy and working hard. Sorry I can't write more but I'm out of time. I love you all!
Love,
Elder Wilson
Hello everyone! Unfortunately I don't have much time to write. We're here on the U of A campus and it took us almost half an hour just to find computers.
Anyways everything is going well here in Los Reales. We had a baptism on Saturday. A young man named Daniel Virgen.
I also did my first four baptismal interviews in the last week and those were very humbling, revelatory experiences.
Elder Smith is headed off to Peru on Wednesday morning, so I'll be back to a two-some. Lately we've been working out the three-some thing a lot better but I'm not going to lie: It will be really really nice to be back to training only one person.
The branch had a huge Mexican party on Saturday. It had waaaaay better attendance than any sacrament meeting has ever had. I'm not going to lie, it's a little frustrating when you've been breaking your back to get an investigator to church for a week and half to no avail but when you simply extend an invitation for a party they're there no problem. Mexicans love their parties...
I'm doing really really well. Happy and working hard. Sorry I can't write more but I'm out of time. I love you all!
Love,
Elder Wilson
Baxter, You Know I Don"t Speak Spanish
September 15, 2008
Hello everybody!
Well it's been a good week. I've found out a solution for the 3-some problem: Get a member to go with you and then visit appointments while your companions go out tracting! Instead of a third wheel you get a 2-for-1 deal!
We had a dissapointing Sunday despite an otherwise excellent week. One experience from Saturday that was really awesome. We went to an appointment on Saturday evening but they said they didn't have time so it fell through. Then, as we were leaving, we saw a middle-aged-woman walking down the sidewalk with her two children. I ran up and contacted her and we started talking and started teaching her the first lesson. In the middle of the lesson she started crying and told us that that morning she had been at her father's house and had been looking through some old stuff and found a Bible. She picked it up and started reading it and felt that now was the time for her and her family to get closer to God, but that she didn't know what to do or where to go next. "And now that I met you I know God is trying to send me a sign and that he has a plan for me." Woah, cool. The Lord really does have his hand in this work.
Tucson has been its usual wonderful self. Things cooled off a little for a couple of days but unfortunately that didn't last.
Mom asked me what I love about Tucson. Well Tucson as a whole is actually a beautiful charming city. The University is really cool, and it's really green and has some cool plant-life, what with all the different types of cactus and such. There really is a lot to like about the city. Even the weather is good once you get out of the summer. South Tucson (where I serve), on the other hand, is the armpit of the universe. I love the people here despite where they live. But Tucson as a whole is cool.
Well the Zone Leaders keep telling me that President Walker has an awesome new scheme to double baptisms in the mission, and then put smug looks on their faces and won't tell me what it is. So apparently we should be expecting great things from the ATM!
Well that's about it for this week's edition. I LOVE THIS WORK! We had an assistant who went home finished his mission a few months ago and now two of his friends have baptismal dates. Member-missionary efforts WORK! Please please please don't neglect your responsibilities as member-missionaries. Someone doesn't have to be your best friend in the world in order to invite them to learn more about the restored gospel.
I love you all! Thank you so much for your continuing support, especially those of you who wrote me (Mom, Dad, Chris, Harrison, Emily, Nena)!
Love,
Elder Wilson
Hello everybody!
Well it's been a good week. I've found out a solution for the 3-some problem: Get a member to go with you and then visit appointments while your companions go out tracting! Instead of a third wheel you get a 2-for-1 deal!
We had a dissapointing Sunday despite an otherwise excellent week. One experience from Saturday that was really awesome. We went to an appointment on Saturday evening but they said they didn't have time so it fell through. Then, as we were leaving, we saw a middle-aged-woman walking down the sidewalk with her two children. I ran up and contacted her and we started talking and started teaching her the first lesson. In the middle of the lesson she started crying and told us that that morning she had been at her father's house and had been looking through some old stuff and found a Bible. She picked it up and started reading it and felt that now was the time for her and her family to get closer to God, but that she didn't know what to do or where to go next. "And now that I met you I know God is trying to send me a sign and that he has a plan for me." Woah, cool. The Lord really does have his hand in this work.
Tucson has been its usual wonderful self. Things cooled off a little for a couple of days but unfortunately that didn't last.
Mom asked me what I love about Tucson. Well Tucson as a whole is actually a beautiful charming city. The University is really cool, and it's really green and has some cool plant-life, what with all the different types of cactus and such. There really is a lot to like about the city. Even the weather is good once you get out of the summer. South Tucson (where I serve), on the other hand, is the armpit of the universe. I love the people here despite where they live. But Tucson as a whole is cool.
Well the Zone Leaders keep telling me that President Walker has an awesome new scheme to double baptisms in the mission, and then put smug looks on their faces and won't tell me what it is. So apparently we should be expecting great things from the ATM!
Well that's about it for this week's edition. I LOVE THIS WORK! We had an assistant who went home finished his mission a few months ago and now two of his friends have baptismal dates. Member-missionary efforts WORK! Please please please don't neglect your responsibilities as member-missionaries. Someone doesn't have to be your best friend in the world in order to invite them to learn more about the restored gospel.
I love you all! Thank you so much for your continuing support, especially those of you who wrote me (Mom, Dad, Chris, Harrison, Emily, Nena)!
Love,
Elder Wilson
Are You Sure this Water is Sanitary? It Looks Questionable..
Sep 8, 2008
Hello everyone! I'm going to go ahead and start off by answering Mom's questions.
1) No I don't always use sunscreen.
2) I take heliocare pills often
3) I got and am thoroughly enjoying the granola. (It's disappearing at an alarmingly fast rate... Elder Smith midnight raids are suspected)
4) I don't need any more pills.
5) There aren't many bugs here, just a few cocroaches. (Thank goodness)
So working in a threesome is a little bit of a challenge. Not as many people open doors, I think it's kind of intimidating to have three people in shirts and ties on your doorstep. Elder Smith, who is waiting for his Visa, is an interesting character. He's a good missionary and he's got some great skills but he's got some quirks that took a while to get used to. Oh and we had to teach him to ride a bike and he bailed HARD five times since last Wednesday! But he's a trooper and gets back on every time.
We had Miguel's baptism this week... it was pretty awesome. Almost nobody was there, but the spirit was and that's what counts. Elder Thomas baptized him, his first baptism and he said the prayer in Spanish perfectly, yay! Very dissimilar from the baptism a week ago that took six attempts. Miguel has changed SO MUCH. It's unreal. The gospel is true, and it truly WORKS!
We played basketball this morning, and I dunked ALL OVER some elder. Warn Brig that I haven't lost it all (yet). Actually I'm becoming semi-famous in the mission for having good morning workouts. I've started stretching for the first time in my life... I can touch my toes now!
Well that's about all I have for this week. I have a goal of making next week my best email ever! I love Tucson! I never thought I'd say that but I do! And I love missionary work and the gospel! And I love you all! Send more letters!
Love,
Elder Wilson
Hello everyone! I'm going to go ahead and start off by answering Mom's questions.
1) No I don't always use sunscreen.
2) I take heliocare pills often
3) I got and am thoroughly enjoying the granola. (It's disappearing at an alarmingly fast rate... Elder Smith midnight raids are suspected)
4) I don't need any more pills.
5) There aren't many bugs here, just a few cocroaches. (Thank goodness)
So working in a threesome is a little bit of a challenge. Not as many people open doors, I think it's kind of intimidating to have three people in shirts and ties on your doorstep. Elder Smith, who is waiting for his Visa, is an interesting character. He's a good missionary and he's got some great skills but he's got some quirks that took a while to get used to. Oh and we had to teach him to ride a bike and he bailed HARD five times since last Wednesday! But he's a trooper and gets back on every time.
We had Miguel's baptism this week... it was pretty awesome. Almost nobody was there, but the spirit was and that's what counts. Elder Thomas baptized him, his first baptism and he said the prayer in Spanish perfectly, yay! Very dissimilar from the baptism a week ago that took six attempts. Miguel has changed SO MUCH. It's unreal. The gospel is true, and it truly WORKS!
We played basketball this morning, and I dunked ALL OVER some elder. Warn Brig that I haven't lost it all (yet). Actually I'm becoming semi-famous in the mission for having good morning workouts. I've started stretching for the first time in my life... I can touch my toes now!
Well that's about all I have for this week. I have a goal of making next week my best email ever! I love Tucson! I never thought I'd say that but I do! And I love missionary work and the gospel! And I love you all! Send more letters!
Love,
Elder Wilson
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Hey try checking the bag...SAMSONITE, I was way off!
Hello everybody! It's been a good week here in Tucson. Still hot, but getting better, slowly but surely! It's transfer week and I am... staying in Los Reales. But Elder Thomas and I are receiving a new companion named Elder Smith. So we'll be a threesome. Elder Smith is waiting for a visa so that he can head out to Peru. Oh, and he doesn't know how to ride a bike yet... so we'll see how that works out.
We had a baptism this last Saturday, it was pretty awesome. Veronica Toledo is her name. She had her brother baptize her and it took him SIX times but it got done in the end.
We have another baptism this Saturday for Miguel, he's one of my favorite investigators ever. He started out as a loser alcoholic who did nothing all day but drink and live at his Mom's house. Well he's kicked the alcohol, has a job, payed off his tickets, and is getting baptized this Saturday! I love seeing the gospel bring purpose into the lives of others!
Yes, yes I know, I AM a political genius and I DID call that Sarah Palin was a legit VP candidate more than a year ago. It's a little sad to hear that my man Mitt is out of it. I wonder what he's going to do for the next four years.
Every now and then and here and there I catch glimpses and soundbites about the gay marriage issue that's going on. Half of me is really glad that I'm not home to witness it, and the other half of me wishes I was there to fight the fight. I guess there's always the next go-around when it becomes and issue again in another two years.
So I don't know how much of this I've shared with you but things are really taking off in our branch. We keep setting the record for attendance each week (Even on labor day weekend), this month we're going to pass the record for baptisms in the branch in a year, we've actually finally got most of the leadership positions filled, and the members are excited for the work!
Well that's it for this week. Hope this email was long enough for you. If you'd like to know more... send me some questions! I love you all! Thanks for your love and support.
Love,
Elder Ben "Tree" Wilson
We had a baptism this last Saturday, it was pretty awesome. Veronica Toledo is her name. She had her brother baptize her and it took him SIX times but it got done in the end.
We have another baptism this Saturday for Miguel, he's one of my favorite investigators ever. He started out as a loser alcoholic who did nothing all day but drink and live at his Mom's house. Well he's kicked the alcohol, has a job, payed off his tickets, and is getting baptized this Saturday! I love seeing the gospel bring purpose into the lives of others!
Yes, yes I know, I AM a political genius and I DID call that Sarah Palin was a legit VP candidate more than a year ago. It's a little sad to hear that my man Mitt is out of it. I wonder what he's going to do for the next four years.
Every now and then and here and there I catch glimpses and soundbites about the gay marriage issue that's going on. Half of me is really glad that I'm not home to witness it, and the other half of me wishes I was there to fight the fight. I guess there's always the next go-around when it becomes and issue again in another two years.
So I don't know how much of this I've shared with you but things are really taking off in our branch. We keep setting the record for attendance each week (Even on labor day weekend), this month we're going to pass the record for baptisms in the branch in a year, we've actually finally got most of the leadership positions filled, and the members are excited for the work!
Well that's it for this week. Hope this email was long enough for you. If you'd like to know more... send me some questions! I love you all! Thanks for your love and support.
Love,
Elder Ben "Tree" Wilson
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